CLIFTONVILLE boss Jim Magilton has warned his players they need to be on their guard ahead of their visit to Championship pacesetters Bangor in the last 16 of the Bet McLean Cup this evening (Tuesday, 7.45pm). 

The Reds make the trip to the Bangor Fuels Arena looking to advance to the last eight at the expense of the hosts who are five points clear at this early juncture in the race for promotion. 

Magilton believes that Lee Feeney’s troops will be licking their lips at the prospect of the fixture and has called on his players to have the right mentality and attitude for their visit to North Down.  

“We have to be on our guard,” insists Magilton. 

“I’ve been on the other side of that and I would be licking my lips, so if I’m Bangor, I’m ready. We have to be ready for that. It’s about your mentality and your attitude to that; you have to approach it in the right manner. If you take anything for granted in football, it bites you and you can’t afford to do that.”

Magilton believes that Friday evening's win against Crusaders was an important message to the dressing room and fans alike and believes his side showed the passion and desire needed for the derby fixture. 

“Through the course of the season, there is going to be all sorts of ways to win games. Against Crusaders, we showed a way of winning the game and that was an important message for our dressing room,” he reflected. 

“It was an important message to our fans because it was a local derby and we had to show that real passion and desire and all the ugly football that you need. We showed that and I’m obviously delighted.” 

The Reds’ boss was also delighted that Joe Gormley’s first-half strike was able to comfort them against an opposition that he was wary of due to their attacking quality. 

“It was real quality and he [Joe] missed one or two, which you don’t expect,” Magilton recalled. 

“For him, you are genuinely shocked when he gets an opportunity inside the box which he misses, but he took his goal brilliantly well and that was a comfort to us. 

“You are always very, very cautious against the quality of opposition, especially with their attacking threat. I think they are outstanding going forward too and again, we had to be diligent, and we had to be really resilient tonight and we showed that and we’re delighted.”